In this file photo, a signboard at a gas station in Seoul shows gasoline and diesel prices on March 31, 2024. (Image courtesy of Yonhap)
SEOUL, Apr. 16 (Korea Bizwire) — South Korea’s import prices rose for a third consecutive month in March due to an increase in oil prices amid a rise in the Korean won against the U.S. dollar, central bank data showed Tuesday.
The import price index rose 0.4 percent last month from a month earlier following a 1.0 percent on-month gain the previous month and a 2.5 percent advance in January, according to the preliminary data from the Bank of Korea (BOK).
From a year earlier, prices fell 0.7 percent, the data showed.
Import prices are a major factor that determines the path of the country’s overall rate of inflation.
The Dubai crude price, South Korea’s benchmark, stood at US$84.18 per barrel in March, up from $80.88 the previous month, according to the central bank.
The Korean won averaged 1,330.70 against the greenback last month, slightly up from 1,331.74 the previous month.
Import prices of raw materials rose 0.9 percent, while those for intermediate goods gained 0.4 percent.
The export price index also advanced 0.4 percent in March after a 1.6 percent on-month gain the previous month, according to the data.
South Korea’s inflation stayed over 3 percent for the second consecutive month in March on record prices of fruit and rising global oil prices.
Consumer prices, a key gauge of inflation, rose 3.1 percent on-year last month, following a 3.2 percent increase the previous month, according to the data from Statistics Korea.
Earlier this month, the BOK kept its key interest rate unchanged at 3.5 percent for the 10th straight time. The central bank delivered seven consecutive rate hikes from April 2022 to January 2023.
(Yonhap)
